The Fate of Two
by Hazelcloud
Summary: You only need one male and one female to resurrect a species. So Galbatorix decides to try and split the green egg. After all, why settle for one if you can have two?
1. A Dark Magic

**Hazelcloud: Hey everybody! Yes, I know that I have a ton of fan-fictions started…but I'm writing this one with my sister, and I think it's one of our best ideas yet!**

**Dark Magic**

The castle at Uru'baen loomed like a dark nightmare over the surrounding area. It could cause even the hardest battle-scarred warrior to shudder. It casts a shadow over the city when the sun shines bright. The warming rays of the sun never seem to affect the black stone exterior; instead of softening the castle they cause it to seem even sharper. It stands there as if challenging those who hope to face its mighty wrath.

Still, it wasn't so much the castle that frightened people but rather the man that lived inside. With a reputation blacker than the sky at night even the dark king's name could cause men to shudder, women to flinch, and send small children crying to their parents. Cold, cruel, and ruthless, the king waged a relentless war on the Varden, elves, and any others that dared to resist.

A word from him could have you killed. Not only that but your family, neighbors, and even the most distant of your relatives would soon join you in the grave. Your home would be burned to the ground, your animals slaughtered, and your fields sowed with salt.

That is if you were lucky. Some traitors were burned at the stake, others, still living, were entombed where no one would ever find them. The dungeons at Uru'baen were filled with hopeless prisoners, prisoners who by now thought death would be a gift. Torture was the king's specialty. Torture to him was what knitting would be to a grandmother. Relaxing, and wonderful way to relieve stress.

Murtagh was long since past being one of those prisoners. He was the king's new right hand man, albeit an unwilling one. Stoically, he bore all of the pain he was put through constantly looking for a way out of his troubles. The king often summoned him, sometimes to brag about the empire, other times in fits of rage that he would take out on Murtagh.

The king currently sat on the throne impatiently drumming his fingers on the arm of the chair. Contrary to popular belief, the king was not ghastly looking. He was not bald, and he did not have blood red eyes or pointed teeth. His eyes were a deep brown color, and his teeth looked as good as anyone else's in those times. If he had been standing, one would have noticed that he was about six feet tall, not a giant but no where near being called short. He wore a red and black vest with jewels shone into it. On his head rested a small gold crown, and the top of his head had a coating of graying hair; it was the only sign of his age.

A knock resounded through the throne room, and the king called out in a practiced orator's voice.

"Come in, Murtagh," The doors swung open, and in stepped Murtagh. Murtagh hurried to bow, wondering why the king had summoned him.

"You summoned me, Galbatorix?" He said questioningly. He fervently hoped that it had somehow been a mistake.

"Of course!" Galbatorix managed to sound shocked. "I have come up with a brilliant idea!" Murtagh risked glancing up, and saw that Galbatorix looked slightly excited, his eyes were shining brightly.

"Idea, my lord?" He said. He tried to blend the right amount of curiosity, and humble-ness but failed. To his utter relief Galbatorix did not seem to notice.

"How many creatures do you need to restart a species, Murtagh?" Galbatorix asked. Murtagh frowned at the floor confused by the king's sudden change in interest.

"My lord?" He mumbled lamely.

"Stand up!" Galbatorix snapped, and Murtagh hurried to follow his commands. Galbatorix rose out of his chair, and began to pace across the throne room heading for the door. Murtagh followed quickly behind him. "Now, let's start over again. How many creatures do you need to resurrect a species?"

"Two," Murtagh answered quickly. Galbatorix smiled contentedly, and nodded.

"Yes, a male and a female. Now, Murtagh, how many dragons do we have?" Galbatorix's tone was calm and patient, the voice that parents use when addressing a small child.

"Two males," Murtagh said, thinking of Thorn, and Shruiken. Galbatorix shook his head, and Murtagh flinched but the king did not yet lash out.

"Three, two males and one female. More than enough to resurrect the dragon rider's. Murtagh, what gender is the green egg?" The king asked. They were proceeding quickly through the castle. The stone hallways of the castle all looked identical, and more than one servant had gotten lost during their first week of work.

"Male," Murtagh said. He still had no idea where this thread of conversation was going.

"Exactly…male. We really don't need another male dragon," Galbatorix paused waiting for objections. Murtagh did not disappoint.

"We do need more dragons because they would make it easier to defeat the Varden,"

"No, we could defeat the Varden now, with the help of the eldunari. We do not need it but if we could get more from the egg then we would not complain," Galbatorix said. Murtagh frowning, mulling it over in his head. It was like a puzzle, but none of the pieces seemed to fit together.

"So…you want to destroy the egg?" He said finally. Galbatorix chuckled, but pretended to look horrified.

"Of course not. I want to try to split the egg," The king said triumphantly. He had finally unveiled his idea, and Murtagh was stunned.

"Split the egg?" He gasped.

"Yes, if it works right then we will have two dragon eggs. If not then we lost nothing," Galbatorix said shrugging indifferently.

"That would require a huge amount of energy. I don't think that I could do it," Murtagh said. Galbatorix gave him a look that suggested that he was daft.

"Are you forgetting the eldunari? We have the energy needed. I will perform the spell, I would not want you to mess it up," The king said. Murtagh started to protest but Galbatorix cut him off. "All I need from you is energy,"

"When are you going to do that?" Murtagh asked. He looked up, and his mouth became dry. The wall in front of them was moving. The king had swiftly touched a procession of stones of the wall in order to unlock a room that Murtagh had never seen before. He followed the king inside and looked around.

It was small, and lavishly decorated. The room was a circular shape, and had a high vaulted ceiling. Marble columns appeared to be part of the walls of the room, spaced out in even intervals. Mosaics of Galbatorix's battles against the riders glittered covering the walls. The ceiling was made of a white stone that reflected the light from the candles that sat on the floor along the walls. The floor was a deep black stone much like the exterior of the castle.

In the very center of the room, there was a black marble pedestal. On the top of the pedestal wrapped partially in red velvet lay the last dragon egg. It was a stunning green color. The color was closest to the pine needles on a pine tree.

Galbatorix walked swiftly to the egg, and picked it up discarding the velvet covering. He linked minds with Murtagh, Shruiken, and Thorn.

_Now, I command you to give me your strength, and the strength of the eldunari that you possess. _Galbatorix's mind commanded Thorn, and Murtagh. They had no choice but to obey.

Galbatorix smiled as energy began to flow into him. He held the dragon egg in one hand and spread his arms apart. Closing his eyes to help his concentration, he summoned his dark magic, relishing its slimy powerful feel. Then he spoke the words of the spell.

_Jierda! Malthinae unin twegen._

Energy rushed out of him at an alarmingly fast rate. Luckily with so many eldunari, Shruiken, Thorn, and Murtagh; he had more than enough energy to complete the spell. After a few minutes, the drain of energy stopped. Opening his eyes, he saw that the spell had been a success. Both of his hands contained a dragon egg. The two eggs were smaller than a normal dragon egg, about half the size.

The egg in his right hand was a pale sea green, as though the dragon was a mere shadow of the original. The egg in his right hand was slightly less dark as though the dragon had slightly faded upon being split.

Galbatorix smiled, and turned to face Murtagh, who was staring at the eggs in amazement.

"Now for some riders!" The king said cheerfully.

**Hazelcloud: I hope you like it. We would love feedback in the form of reviews.**

**Nobody: The spell is Break! Bind into two. Doesn't that rock or what?!!!**

**Hazelcloud: Oh, and 'Nobody' would be my sister...**


	2. Pattern to Madness

**Pattern to Madness**

**Nobody: Hiya!!!!**

A man sat in a small circular room, with books strewn around him like a tornado had hit. That tornado was Galbatorix.

"Arrg!" The man cried out, just a few threads from madness. "Why is the perfect rider so hard to find?"

"Maybe…it's because you cannot predict who a rider will be," Murtagh said sullenly. It had been a few days since Galbatorix had successfully split the egg. In that time, they had searched through countless records trying to figure out what qualities the rider would possess.

"Fetch me a glass of water, Murtagh!" Galbatorix snapped annoyed. Why did no one ever trust his plans?

"Yes, m'lord," Murtagh scurried quickly from the room, anxious to be away from the angry king. The king sat quietly, after Murtagh left, deep in thought.

"I must be over-looking something obvious," He mused. The wheels in his head turned swiftly, and something clicked. It was as if a curtain veiling the answer had been removed. "I'm an idiot! It's so obvious!" There was a knock, and Murtagh entered the room in time to hear Galbatorix's last outburst.

"Sir?" He inquired. Galbatorix turned to him, eyes shining with excitement.

"Think about it! What have we been researching?" He asked.

"Dragon riders," Murtagh answered, idly wondering if the king had finally lost his marbles.

"What kind of dragon riders?" Galbatorix said gleefully.

"All of them…"

"Exactly! It's too broad. These are the last eggs of the new age of riders. What rider's should we be researching?" Galbatorix said.

"The recent ones?" Murtagh questioned quite lost. Galbatorix nodded patiently.

"Yes, the rider's of the new age. So what do you and Eragon have in common?"

"We share the same mother,"

"No, idiot!" Galbatorix said smiling. "You said Brom was Eragon's father. Morzan is your father. What do you have in common?"

"We're both descended from dragon riders!" It dawned on Murtagh. Galbaorix clapped his hands.

"Now, bring me some histories, and some genealogies. We've got some descendants to find," Galbatorix said.

Soon, they began the painstaking process of tracking the descendants of numerous dragon riders. Using the histories they looked up dragon riders, and then using the genealogies they tried to follow the twisted trail of relatives to the present day. In about a week's time, Galbatorix decided that they had located enough. Summons were sent out to the various towns and cities where the relatives resided calling them to Uru'baen within the next week, relatives slowly trickled in.

**Nobody: How's that for an awesome chapter? I was being Murtagh in the questioning and I wrote the first two paragraphs!!!**

**Hazelcloud: Anyway…review! The next chapter is all Nobody but she refuses to write if we don't get reviews. So like I said…review!**


	3. The Letter

**Nobody: Hey, here's my chapter.**

**The Letter**

Leah grinned. She flicked her long fair fingers across the table.

"Ha, I win." She said proudly. The man grunted and gave her some coins.

"Leah!"

"Yes?" The girl said meekly.

"Get yourself over here and stop gambling!" The woman yelled. The girl slowly walked over.

"Yes, mom?"

"Please, start dancing and singing!"

The girl picked up a polished stick with a light green ribbon on it, matching perfectly with her dress. She twirled about, mouse brown hair swinging, about to her shoulders. Inaudible words coming out of her mouth, so high and in a twinkling voice that carried away on the wind. People stopped by sometimes and dropped coins around her. Around and around she went until she had a sudden feeling that she was falling, falling through space. The girl passed out limply on the ground.

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"Leah?" A childish voice questioned.

"Hmm?" Leah said.

"I was wondering if you were ever going to wake up and play with me."

"Don't worry, Ben, I'll always be here for you." Leah answered.

"Okay!" The little boy bounced off. Whispered voices came through the other room.

"What are we going to do with here if she keeps passing out?" A woman questioned.

"We should feed her more; she's been going on very short rations." The man replied.

"She should keep to that diet or she'll end up with a large stomach and she won't be beautiful." The wife contradicted.

"She's not getting enough nutrition, and her bones are practically showing!"

"She's just fine!"

"Tell that to me when she dies!" The man hissed. Footsteps could be heard heading toward her bedroom.

"Dad? What are you doing here?" Her dad entered holding a bowl of soup.

"Just making sure you don't starve."

"Oh…" Leah accepted the soup and began to eat it ravenously. In the middle of a mouthful she heard tapping on the front door.

"Tap Tap Tap." Leah's spoon clattered into the bowl.

"Who could that be?" She asked. Her dad shrugged and left the room to answer the door. Leah listened from inside her bedroom.

"I'm here to deliver this message to a Leah Godwin." The man said seriously.

"We are her parents."

"Here, give this to her."

"Will you be staying for dinner?" Leah's mom asked.

"Yes."

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"Leah?" Her father questioned.

"Hmmm?"

"This is for you." Her dad handed her a folded piece of paper. Leah grabbed it and unfolded it quickly. Her eyes tore across the page, taking in the words. Suddenly she froze.

"Honey?"

"This, this letter is calling me to King Galbatorix's palace." Leah stuttered.

"For what?"

"It doesn't state for what." Leah said. Her father sighed.

"Well, I guess we have to send you or King Galbatorix will get mad."

"But what about Ben?" Leah sniffed.

"We'll take care of him, he has other friends up in town, you know."

"Yah, I guess." Leah broke out sobbing. Her father grabbed her into a tight hug. Tears were flowing everywhere.

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"Take care, Leah!" Her parents yelled.

"By, Leah, be here for me… someday." Ben said. Leah smiled tightly and turned away to hide her tears. The two walked farther into town.

"We'll be stopping here to get some horses." The young man said.

"Okay." The man walked away. Leah waited impatiently, finally he returned holding two horses.

"Here." He said handing her the golden palomino horse. He mounted the brown horse with a swift movement. Leah tried to copy him, but she just ended up scrambling onto the horse's back.

"What's your name?" Leah asked.

"Vincent."

"Well, Vincent, how long until we reach King Galbatorix's palace?"

"A couple of days."

"Umm." Leah ran out of things to say, because the man didn't really say anything he just answered like it was a command. They sat in silence most of the trip, camping out at night, eating when necessary. Soon, a dark palace loomed over their heads and Leah began to feel uneasy.

"Those soldiers over there will escort you to your room, where you will clean up, then they will take you to the waiting room."

"Okay." Leah headed toward the men and was escorted to her room. Once in her room she toke a warm bath and changed into the pretty light pink gown that had been laid out on the bed. She combed her hair and stepped out side. She walked along the corridors with the men until, finally, the opened a door.

"This is the waiting room, where you will wait until mealtime." One of the men said. Leah looked around. The room was full of children, about her age, milling about and talking to each other.

"Wow!" Leah said.


	4. Offspring and Letters

**Offspring and Letters**

"Rider's whelp," The voices whispered, the dark implications of those words dripping like honey. The hushed tones laced with contempt, and just perhaps the slightest whiff of fear.

The subject of the whispered words walked quickly threw the streets seemingly unaffected by the obvious. Inside the words burned in the slow growing annoyance, and embarrassment masked by the stoic impression of the outward shell. Almost imperceptibly the crowds shifted always leaving space for the figure to pass through.

Upon approaching the manor that dominated the outer landscape of Uru'baen the figure slowed and paused glancing back at the castle. The black castle of the dark king rose like a grim reaper out of the depths of Uru'baen, and hovered impressively over the sprawling buildings that made up the rest of the city. The manor was situated just a mile or so from the city's outer wall.

The sandy brick walls that surrounded the manor parted in one main wrought iron gate. Gripping the bar of the gate, she started to open the gates. Just then the cantering sound of a horse's hooves entered the relative quiet of the manors land. The rider wore the red and black livery and insignia of Galbatorix's army. In one hand, the guard held an envelope and as he halted the horse and held it out to the figure.

"You, girl, could you deliver this to the lady of the house?" The rider asked gruffly, just wanting to get back to Uru'baen. The manor always made the inhabitants of the city nervous, even though the original owner was long dead and cold in the grave.

"Of course, sir," She reached up, and he handed over the letter before quickly galloping away. She watched until he had returned to the city, and then heaved the iron gates open. She proceeded into the courtyard of the manor, and the gates clanged shut behind her.

The courtyard held the corpses of many dead flowers with a few resilient ones still blooming bringing life to the silent manor. It had fallen into disrepair, and was approaching the point where hope for it would fade. The girl gritted her teeth, just one more chore to add to the never-ending list that seemed to grow with each new day.

She slipped in through the smaller wooden kitchen door, preferring to avoid the main entrance and the gruesome pictures that had been favorites of the master of the house. The layout of the manor was symmetrical. Two identical wings branched off from the foyer, and dining room. Each wing had all of the necessities of life, kitchens; bedrooms, maid's rooms, and the like, so it was possible for the residents of one wing to never have any contact with those of another. Perfect for the housing of a master, wife or two, offspring, and the great numbers of household servants that come with any great estate.

Grabbing a candle, and lighting it she settled down at wooden table. Placing the letter on the table she examined the front. It was a creamy color of paper, the kind reserved for the rich and wealthy, and the intricate cursive on the front was the penmanship of a practiced writer. The gold ink that had been used gleamed in the flicking candlelight, and what remained of the fading sunlight. The whole thing reeked of wealth, and an abundance of it.

_Lady Kaelin_ the front read. The girl blinked in surprise, the writer knew then of the true state of the manor. The real lady of the house languished away in the confines of the manor unconcerned by the welfare of the finances or anything else. A single tear slid down her cheek, and she wiped it away angrily. After her father's death, her mother had refused contact with the outside world, and had sunk into a depression leaving her daughter in charge of trying to hold together the estate.

She sat contemplating the letter, and with a resigned sigh opened it.

_Lady Kaelin,_

_Your family and I have long considered each other as more than just master and servant and I have been most depressed by the reports that I have received on your hardship. I have a request that would certainly improve the status of your mother and yourself. Of course, there are some clauses on the offer but I am sure that with some time we could work out an acceptable trade._

_I will send a guard to meet you at the manor tomorrow afternoon. I look forward to our meeting, and would greatly appreciate if you would meet with me even under such short notice._

_Most respectfully,_

_King Galbatorix, Lord and Ruler of the Empire of Alagaesia, and Last of the Elder Riders_

Kaelin placed the letter on the table, and considered the letter. There would be no refusing the king, the letter made that obvious. Still, the offer made her nervous. The king was known to be devious and shrewd. There had to be many benefits for him involved, but she could not think of any reason why he would need to speak with her.

She got up and began gathering the ingredients for a small meal. As she prepared she continued pondering the letter. After a while though, she gave up figuring out the king, the letter held no clues and guessing would only drive her insane. Plating the food, and grabbing the tray she made her way through the darkening hallways of the manor. She stopped outside the door of one of the bedrooms, and knocked quietly.

There was no answer so balancing the tray in one hand she opened the door and peered in. A lady lay in the bed reading by the flickering candlelight, her blond hair and pale skin glowed in the light making her appear younger than Kaelin knew her to be. She did not acknowledge her, and Kaelin entered placing the tray on a table near the bedside.

"Here you go, don't forget to eat," She said feigning cheerfulness. The lady glanced at the food and nodded regally.

"Thank you," The lady said. Kaelin nodded, and started towards the door. Then she remembered the letter. Pausing in the doorway, she turned back towards the lady.

"I am going to Uru'baen tomorrow. You'll have to feed yourself," She said. The lady glared at her but did not object. Still, as she walked away from the room she heard the lady muttering.

"Blasted servant girl! She takes too much vacation, and her tone of voice. She acts much too familiar around me. I will have to dismiss her as soon as I can get around to it,"

Kaelin felt a small sob escape her, it was getting worse. Her mother no longer even recognized her daughter. She stared at her reflection in the mirror.

A young woman stared back her. Deep brown hair framed her face, and piercing blue eyes gleamed with unshed tears, and frustration. Her skin was slightly tanner than that of her reclusive mother, but retained a smooth façade that belied all the work she did around the manor. She was an average height and was slight giving her looks that reminded her of her father. It was her curse to look like her father, with no hints of her mother's blond hair or green eyes that would soften the likeness.

Perhaps she thought this meeting with Galbatorix would help her escape from her father's shade, and her mother's depression. She nodded determined to view things in a brighter light. This would be interesting, a break from the monotony of her life.

The guard waiting for the lady at the manor was becoming rather impatient. Kaelin continued brushing and saddling her coal black horse, Castello. She would never leave Castello at the manor for her mother would no doubt forget to care for him or worse, sell him off. Then she mounted and signaled to the guard that she was ready.

Soon they were arriving at Uru'baen, and someone took her horse to the castle's stable. Then the same soldier led her to the throne room. Upon entering she let out a small gasp of surprise. The fancy throne room of King Galbatorix's castle reminded her of a schoolhouse. Children were lined up in front of the throne looking as though they were about to be scolded.

Galbatorix sat on the throne glaring at the children. The guard pushed her into line with the others, glaring at him. How dare he push her! Galbatorix counted the children and glared at the guard.

"Vincent, we're short a child. How dare you fail me?" Galbatorix hissed softly. The next second the guard, Vincent, was writhing on the floor shrieks of pain echoing around the room. Kaelin stared in horror as blood began to drip from his nose and mouth, and then he fell still.

There was a clang, and the door opened. A man strode in accompanied by a large red dragon. Kaelin let out a small gasp. The red rider!

**Hazelcloud: So how was it? Good? Bad? Rushed? Please review and let me know. I really want to know what you think, this chapter took me quite awhile.**

**Any guesses for Kaelin's ancestors?**

**My sister, formerly Nobody, now has an account **Dawn of Time** and she is in charge of the next chapter. Reviews are her fuel!**

**Dawn of Time: Yum!**


	5. Discovering Dragonlings

**Hazelcloud: Hello, again. It's been awhile, but Dawn of Time has not written anything yet so I'm taking over for a chapter.**

**Discovering Dragonlings A.K.A. Research always has a return.**

There was a clang, and the door opened. A man strode in accompanied by a large red dragon. Kaelin let out a small gasp. The red rider!

The red rider didn't even glance over as he walked into the room, it was as though he already knew why the throne room looked like a school house, and could honestly care less. Which would make sense, Kaelin thought, seeing as he was likely involved in this little scheme of the king's.

"Murtagh," King Galbatorix acknowledged the rider, as the red rider performed a short bow before the throne, straightening quickly.

"Your majesty," Murtagh responded his eyes still lowered to the floor, at least as far as Kaelin could tell. She tilted her head slightly in order to hear the whispered words that Galbatorix said next.

"Do you have them with you?" Galbatorix asked shortly, although Kaelin sensed that it was more of a rhetorical question. Murtagh nodded and pulled two objects from the leather pouch that hung from the red dragon's neck. Kaelin sighed in frustration for she could not see the objects because they were obscured by the rider's body.

There was a grinding sound, and Kaelin found to her amazement that two stone pillars had just sprouted from the floor. Servants rushed forward, and placed soft velvety cushions on the two pillars. The red rider turned and Kaelin's breath caught as he placed the two objects on the cushions.

The two objects on the pillars were both about the same size and were oval like eggs. The object on the right was a pale sea green and the object on the left was a green color like that of faded or dying pine needles. Both looked like they were made of the smoothest unblemished marble, and Kaelin suddenly wished that she could stroke them for surely they would be pleasing to the touch.

She glanced about the room, and saw that all of the other children were staring at it with expressions that she could only describe as rapture. All of the children that is, except one thin looking girl with soft looking mouse brown hair that reminded her with a sharp pang of her mother. That girl seemed more nervous she supposed and she glanced over. For a few seconds their eyes met over the heads of a couple of small children that could not possibly be more than seven or eight. Kaelin blinked, and turned away quickly focusing her attention on the king right as he was about to speak.

"You have all been selected as possible riders for these dragon eggs," King Galbatorix said confidently. Kaelin felt her heart stop; this wouldn't bring her freedom…no this would be like chaining her to the shade of her father.

"Please come forward one at a time," The red rider, Murtagh said his voice cold and without feeling.

The smallest children rushed forward towards the front of the line that formed right after Murtagh said that. They were so small, and innocent, Kaelin thought, excited by this prospect without the knowledge that it could bring more harm than good. Kaelin drifted towards the end of the line, preferring to be farther from the king. To her surprise the other girl was directly in front of her. The girl turned her head slightly and whispered faintly to Kaelin.

"This doesn't bode too well does it?" She whispered.

"Not at all," Kaelin murmured wondering vaguely if they were allowed to talk. When she looked over at Galbatorix, though she saw that his attention was focused on the children approaching the eggs.

"My name's Leah," The girl said suddenly. Kaelin blinked slightly surprised, this didn't seem like the time to be making friends… then again a friend or acquaintance at least could prove to be helpful in this place.

"Kaelin," She said shortly.

"Pleasure to meet you, Kaelin," Leah whispered.

"Likewise," Kaelin nodded.

They were silent as they stepped forward in order to keep up with the line. Each child that passed the eggs ran their fingers over them gently, and Galbatorix and Murtagh stared at the eggs as though searching for some sort of response. Kaelin felt a growing sense of fear as the line dwindled quickly, none of the children satisfying the dragons in the eggs. Much too soon it seemed; Leah was walking up to the first egg, the one the color of pine needles and brushing her finger lightly across its surface.

Nothing happened… Kaelin could see her breathe a soft sigh of relief. Leah moved on walking towards the pale sea green egg, and Kaelin stepped towards the pine needle green one.

Kaelin reached out and stroked the egg, relishing the soft slickness of the egg's hard shell. That was when she felt the sudden jerk of the egg under her hand, and saw the spider thin crack that emerged on the surface of the egg. She froze, and felt as if she were about to be sick, the horror that rose suddenly in her was like ice cold water that rushed through her.

She took a horrified step back, just as she heard Galbatorix begin to laugh with glee. Vaguely, she realized that the one soldier still standing was herding the other children out of the room looking terrified as much for his own life as for theirs.

The egg began to rock violently, and she moved to stop if from rolling off the pillar barely realizing what she was doing. This would become worse than a curse… King Galbatorix was standing in front of the pillar a broad smile on his face, which seemed horribly out of place there, like an awkward ill-fitting mask.

"I knew it! I just knew you would be one of the rider's," He crowed the smile still on his face though it never reached his eyes. He turned and looked at Murtagh, and his voice was suddenly cold. "Look at her, Murtagh,"

Kaelin looked over at the rider, and felt more cold shock run through her. Murtagh… it really was not that common of a name. Murtagh looked over at her and they both froze staring at each other. He had dark brown hair, and piercing blue eyes… just like her. The realization was dawning in his eyes just as Galbatorix began to speak again.

"I know how horribly disappointed you were to discover that Eragon did not share Morzan as his father…" Galbatorix said his voice sharp and cold.

"No… this can't be," Murtagh said. "Mother had no other children," Galbatorix chuckled again for he already knew what Murtagh didn't, and even Kaelin knew enough to have puzzled it out.

"Tell him," Galbatorix said turning on her. Kaelin shook her head mutely, but Galbatorix fixed her with a glare.

"Morzan was upset that Selena was not spending much time with him anymore," Kaelin said before stopping, her voice would break it she tried to say more. She could see that Murtagh understood at least mostly now, but Galbatorix wasn't satisfied.

"Go on," He commanded, his voice harsh. She knew that he was trying to make this hard on both of them, even though she had already known of Murtagh just never met him.

"My mother was his mistress. He brought her to his manor and kept her there in some of the inner chambers where no one except the servants would find her. I was born around the time that Selena disappeared and Morzan flew into a rage because he could not find her," Kaelin said her voice and gaze steady now as she stared at Murtagh.

"Eragon…" Murtagh whispered quietly.

"Ah… what wonderfully twisted webs we weave," Galbatorix said gleefully. "The first three new riders are all partially related,"

The egg began to rock and this time the side split open revealing a tiny dragon the same shade that the egg had been. It looked so fragile lying there… Kaelin swallowed her fear, and the growing sense of the inevitable, and reached down to touch the dragonling.

**And there I shall stop, for truly now I can go no farther without Dawn of Time. Unless, dear reader's you review enough to make her wish to write, the next chapter could be awhile in coming. Unfortunately, I have other stories that need to be updated also and cannot promise to write the next chapter right away at least.**

**My sincere apologies,**

**Hazelcloud**


	6. Green Sea

**Dawn of Time: Sorry Sorry Sorry! I have discovered Facebook! Also I have grown lazy so I was sorta just reading other fanfictions. Oh, well…. Here I begin!**

**Chapter 6: Green Sea**

I turned as soon as I heard those tell tale sounds of a dragon hatching. Really, there was no mistaking it. The small scratches and the clicks of the soft dragonling voice waiting to be heard. The spider webs of cracks running down the shell now that I had turned to get a view of the glorious sight. I quickly switched my view from the egg to the rider and I saw the face, not of some stranger, but of Kaelin. She had the most contradictory expression on her face, first it was surprise which quickly turned to horror. I barely heard the conversation was happening between the people.

"I knew it! I just knew you would be one of the rider's," He crowed the smile still on his face though it never reached his eyes. He turned and looked at Murtagh, and his voice was suddenly cold. "Look at her, Murtagh,"

"I know how horribly disappointed you were to discover that Eragon did not share Morzan as his father…" Galbatorix was saying his voice sharp and cold.

"No… this can't be," Murtagh said. "Mother had no other children," Galbatorix chuckled again.

"Tell him," Galbatorix said turning on her. Kaelin shook her head mutely, but Galbatorix fixed her with a glare.

"Morzan was upset that Selena was not spending much time with him anymore," Kaelin said before stopping.

"Go on," He commanded, his voice harsh.

"My mother was his mistress. He brought her to his manor and kept her there in some of the inner chambers where no one except the servants would find her. I was born around the time that Selena disappeared and Morzan flew into a rage because he could not find her," Kaelin said, her voice steady.

"Eragon…" Murtagh whispered quietly.

"Ah… what wonderfully twisted webs we weave," Galbatorix said gleefully. "The first three new riders are all partially related," Just after that the dragon hatched, Kaelin shivered and rested her palm on the head of the small dragon. She let out a small cry.

I was nervous and I really wanted to get this over with so I turned to the pale sea green egg and I was about to put my hand on it when I realized I had been resting my hand on it the whole time of the intriguing conversation that had taken place. The egg now appeared to have many cracks running through its shell. Uh oh, I thought. I couldn't have this egg hatch for me, I needed to return home. The egg appeared to be much shyer than the other one and was making as little noise as possible, which also meant the dragonlings progress was very slow. "Hurry it on up, little dragonling!" I whispered. Apparently, it wasn't much of a whisper now because everyone, which would be Galbatorix and several guards, were now focused on me. Kaelin was no where in sight and Murtagh appeared to have disappeared also. Galbatorix strode over to me.

"Now, what do we have here?" Galbatorix fixed me with an evil grin. "A hatching egg, good, I was worried that I would have to go round up more riders' descendents." Murtagh entered the room again, through a different door than when the children entered and exited.

"M'Lord. Kaelin has been situated." Murtagh bowed.

"Thank you." He turned back to Leah. "You, young child, are a descendent of Aleric the rider of Lenora. He was very strong. Your mother, I believe, was the wife of Aleric. You and Ben are their kids, which is why I had to kill Vincent because he did not bring me Ben as well. Your mother remarried after Aleric died, to your stepfather, who you think is your father. So, child, your mother lied and you and Ben are the children Aleric."

"What?" My head was spinning with this new information. But I didn't have time to focus because my dragon had now managed to break his head free. I reached out to help him, but Galbatorix put his hand on my arm firmly. I backed away quickly. The dragonling soon hatched though and was roughly shoved into my hands. A burning sensation took over my left hand. I shifted the dragonling's weight and looked at my hand; it had the silver oval that marked a dragon rider. I became aware that I was being pushed through a door and down several long corridors. I was pushed into a room onto a bed opposite of Kaelin.

"Hey." Kaelin said.

"Hello, this makes for an interesting scenario doesn't it?" I replied.

"Definitely. What are you going to name your dragon?" Kaelin said, still looking slightly shell shocked.

"Hmm, well shouldn't I wait until it's developed a thought process so it can tell me whether it likes the names I suggest?" I stared down at the dragon in my arms. It stared up at me with large sea green eyes. I stroked the scales on its side, watching the sides influx with each breath.

A storm of people flew through the door. Kaelin retreated to the corner of the room. They snatched my dragonling from me and set it down on the table. They stretched him out and measured from his nose to his tail, and then they measured from around his waist. Then the wings were stretched out and the length of the wings was recorded. They looked in it's eyes and checked his mouth. The people put some bags in a pile.

"That is the meat you should feed your dragonling. He is a boy, so that should help you with the naming process." The doctor, I suppose, handed me back my dragonling. "Galbatorix is waiting, so I would hurry it up and name the thing." He set a piercing stare on me and then Kaelin.

"Uh, thanks." I stroked my dragon softly. The people exited quickly. I was staring down on my dragon, daydreaming of small seas that were unusually green. I was brainstorming names and finally boiled it down to one that seemed to fit my little dragon perfectly. "Galedor." I said experimentally, the sea green dragon looked up. "Galedor? Do you like that?" He seemed to be purring. "Yes, your name is Galedor." The dragon licked my face and curled down into another nap. Galedor, my shy sea green dragonling.

**Dawn of Time: Yes, completed in 2 hours! Take that Hazelcloud! Oh please review because I would love feedback on Galedor and Leah!**


	7. A Name's just a Word

**A Name's just a Word**

Kaelin sat on the edge of the bed, uneasily watching as the doctors manhandled Leah's little dragon ling. It would be alright, she knew, since hers had just suffered through the same thing just a bit earlier. The doctors demanded a name, and Leah's face softened as she gazed down on the little dragon.

"Galedor," She said, and scarcely the word was out of her mouth and the doctors were off, racing away with no care for the patients.

"That's a pretty name," Kaelin said, surprising herself by speaking. Leah turned to look at her, and smiled happily. She seemed in love with her dragon already, and Kaelin's heart twinged feeling guilty. Kaelin looked down at the dragon that was nestled uneasily on her lap, it seemed so small and helpless, and it hurt her to just look at it. She didn't need to be in charge of caring for anything else, she had enough on her plate already trying to take care of a delusional mother, and a crumbling estate that would most likely go to Murtagh.

Murtagh… The name gave her pause. He hadn't said anything as he had hurried her to the little room, but his grip on her arm hadn't been harsh. She didn't know him well at all, but they were like kindred spirits. Undoubtedly, he had gone through the humiliation as she had that came with the curse of looking like Morzan.

"Thanks, what did you name yours?" Leah asked, and Kaelin could tell that the girl was genuinely curious.

"Zoltan," She said, idly rubbing a finger down the spine of the dragon. It shifted nervously before settling down into a more comfortable position on her lap.

"I wonder if their hungry," Leah said as she made her way to the bag the doctor had left. She opened it and extracted something that looked like salted beef. She tore off a strip and offered it to her dragon. It lunged forward and tore into the meat. Leah laughed and offered it some more. "Here Kaelin, I'll bet yours is hungry too," Leah tossed her some of the meat strips.

Kaelin nodded in thanks and offered the meat to the dragon. It watched her warily before pulling the strip from her fingers. It settled down and began to gnaw on it, making quick work of the food with its sharp white fangs. She handed the dragon another strip, and watched as it ate that one too.

The door burst open with a bang and in strode the king of Alagaesia. He surveyed the small dragons with a look of distaste. Murtagh stood slightly behind him, a blank look on his face. Leah was standing next to her dragon, looking nervous. To Kaelin's surprise, her little dragon had suddenly stood up; its spine straightened so that the spikes stood straight, and its claws kneaded the blanket. It hissed, and Kaelin realized that it thought that it could protect her.

"The doctors have informed me, that your dragons are smaller than the last hatchling, about half the size," Galbatorix said.

"Is…is that bad?" Leah asked quietly. Galbatorix frowned, but he didn't seem too angered by the outburst.

"The dragon egg was split to get your eggs, so it goes to reason that those dragon lings will only be half as large as a normal dragon hatchling. Unfortunately, this also means that they will likely be weaker too, so I am going to be unable to speed up their growth," Galbatorix was scowling now.

"But I've come up with a better plan, the Varden are becoming a nuisance. People are beginning to doubt that I am the benevolent ruler that I am," Galbatorix said. Kaelin and Leah stared at him wide eyed, wondering just how deluded the man really was. "So, I am going to send a peace offering to the Varden. I'm trying to bring about a new generation of dragon riders to replace the lost corrupt generation, and the best way to do this would be to unite the remaining rider's and have them share the task of training the next generation. As a show of good faith, I'll be sending all of you to the Varden along with a message,"

"But our dragons are barely hatched," Kaelin gasped in shock. Galbatorix smirked and rubbed in hands together in delight.

"The earlier the better!" He said. "Besides Murtagh can take you both on Thorn… or maybe Shruiken will, he would enjoy the chance to be outside Uru'Baen, I suppose," Galbatorix swept around and hurried off, talking out loud to himself, and Murtagh followed close behind, not sparing a look for the two girls, and their dragons.

"Well, that was abrupt," Kaelin said.

"I wonder what the Varden's like?" Leah said nodding. She had nestled down into the blankets on the other bed. "Good night, Kaelin,"

"Good night, Leah," Kaelin lifted the dragon from her lap, and placed him on the corner of the bed before nestling into the blankets. She felt the dragon curl up by her head, and smiled. It was cute the way it had sought to protect her. Maybe… just maybe she had room to take care of one more.

**Hazelcloud: I know it's short but the real interesting stuff should be coming up soon. Dawn of Time should be in charge of the next chapter, so maybe she'll have time to update faster than me, huh?**


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